Unlike Me
by CrazyNutSquirrel
Summary: Shadow thinks about Maria, and listens to a song Rouge e-mailed to him. No flames please. Rated T for safety etc. etc. blah blah blah...


**Note: This was edited so that the paragraphs would (hopefully) not be as blockish. I hope they are easier to read this way.**

"You and I will explore the Earth together Shadow..." Maria had whispered as they looked down on the planet from the ARK. She'd whispered that in his twitching ear on the day G.U.N. killed her, she died on the ARK. She never saw the planet she had come to love from afar. Shadow could only think of that as he sat in the "office" Rouge had set up in one corner of his room.

It consisted of a desk, a computer, and around ten gadgets to hook up to the computer. As he read through an e-mail the Commander had sent him, his eyes glazed and he started thinking about how Maria believed there was a purpose for everything that happened, and she believed the purpose was always positive. He closed his eyes, abandoning any attempts to read the e-mail.

He heard a small noise, "ding", he looked up. Another e-mail. But this time from Rouge, it was titled "A song you might like". He snorted, he didn't like music of any sort. He'd glare at his co-workers until they'd turn off the radio when he had to deal with paperwork at one of the bases.

The song was called Unlike me, by someone called Kate Havnevik, from an album called Melankton. He frowned slightly. Melankton? What in the world did that mean? He sighed after reading the rest of the e-mail, which was Rouge telling him she'd do some serious damage if he didn't listen to the music.

"It's just a song." He grumbled as he clicked the link. It showed a lady moving around underwater. He rolled his eyes, another lame music video. Hmph. They couldn't get worse could they....? Then his ear tilted in the direction of the speakers as he heard the first lyrics.

_There are no guarantees in life_

_Not for the present,_

_Nor for the future._

_All I know is_

_That I'm here;_

_Don't know for how long._

He started watching the ladies movements, somehow, they seemed to go perfectly with the music and the lyrics. His eyes narrowed. Had he just thought that? A few seconds ago the movie would have made no sense to him, and he would not have understood how the music, lyrics, and video harmonized with each other.

_I love the way_

_You live so intensely_

_Enjoy every minute of life_

_With space to swing_

_Your arms around_

_Laughing loudly_

_Unlike me_

_Unlike me_

_Do you think I'm strange?_

_Unlike you_

_Unlike you_

_I am not pretending_

Shadow blinked and quickly searched the lyrics, he read them. "Unlike you I am not pretending". It seemed almost as if the song was talking to him about things he'd thought of. Sometimes he had wondered if Maria was pretending everything was always going to be okay, once he'd even told her that he wasn't pretending to be happy, when she had been.

_There is no time,_

_There is no time,_

_There is no time,_

_Time doesn't really exist._

_The past, the present,_

_And the future,_

_Are all side by side,_

_Hand in hand._

_You move and change,_

_Yet you go nowhere:_

_Everything stays the same_

Those lyrics seemed to be talking to Shadow about his immortality, and about how Maria had changed all the time, but never really done anything different... she'd never yelled, she'd never broken something intentionally, she'd never hit anyone... so many things that you just assumed she wouldn't do because she never had done them... and she never did do those things.

_You stare at me,_

_And ask me questions,_

_Makes me nervous,_

_This room it keeps a constant tone_

_While I'm on a roller coaster_

_Unlike me_

_Unlike me_

_Do you think I'm strange_

_Unlike you_

_Unlike you_

_I am not pretending_

_There is no time_

_There is no time_

_There is no time_

_Time doesn't really exist_

_There is no time_

_There is no time_

_There is no time_

_Time doesn't really exist_

After "while I'm on a roller coaster" had been uttered, Shadow had leaned back in his chair to just watch the lady moving in the video. His thoughts were not occupied by her movements though, he was thinking about how Maria used to ask him questions about the "training" he did.

Gerald had asked him not to tell her, so those times full of questions had made him nervous, his mind had been in utter turmoil as he fought to not tell her anything definite that would help her guess what he did in his training. And yet in the end he'd always give in and tell her, and feel guilty while doing it.

He sighed and passed a hand over his eyes, he was tired. He clicked the page off, then reread the e-mail from the Commander. It was one of the ones he sent out to everyone at the same time, wishing them a happy holiday (in the stiff manner he was even able to convey over a computer) and telling them (in detail) what they would have to do when they got back to work.

Shadow clicked "Reply" on Rouge's e-mail once he finished the Commander's, and thanked her for sending him the song. After the e-mail was sent, he turned off the computer and lay back on his bed, arms behind his head.

His eyes were half-closed as he stared at the ceiling, yet, seemingly past it, as if it wasn't there. He knew, but didn't know how he knew, that the ARK was directly above him at that exact moment. "I'm sorry Maria." He whispered, even though he knew it was not his fault she had died. No, what he was apologizing for was not staying with her until her last breath, because he would never have a last breath, unless the universe ended. "Fragile, like a flower caught in the middle of a sudden winter." Then his eyes closed and he whispered two words. "Unlike me."

**This inspiration came suddenly and unexpectedly while I was exploring the song Unlike Me by Kate Havnevik, which I discovered this morning. I hope you liked it, if you did, please review. If you didn't, don't waste your time leaving a flame, I happen to be trapped in the middle of a ball of water at the current moment, and a flame would only create steam.**

**Disclaimer: CrazyNutSquirrel does not own Shadow, Maria, Professor Gerald Robotnik, the ARK, a computer......**

**Oh shut up you dummy, you know I own a computer. I just don't own Shadow's. Anyway, continuing Disclaimer's disgraceful disclaimer: I do not own the Commander, or Rouge, or SEGA (things would be..... interesting, if I did to say the least). And I most certainly do not own the song "Unlike Me" by Kate Havnevik, which is awesome, and I would never want to steal the credit for, because I think....**

**Disclaimer: Shut up CNS, no one wants to hear about why you think Kate Havnevik, who you have not heard over three songs for, is so fantastic. R&R.**


End file.
